Hand brake



Sem, 3@ 1924.

J. F. @CONNOR HAND BRAKE Filed July l2.

T-- M M t no didiculty WHW F. OCONNOB, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, SSIGNOR, BY NE ABSIGTS, T@

W. MINEIR., INC., A. CORPTION OF DELAWARE.

Application tiled July 12, 1920. Serial Noi t.

To aZZ whom 'it may comer/m.

Be it known that I, JOHN F. OCoNNoR, a

citizen of United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of lhnois, have invented a certain new and part of this specification.

This invention relates hand brakes.

n the operation of hand brakes for railway cars, employing a pawl and ratcheting mechanism, such as are now coming. into extensive use, it has been found that the to improvements in locking mechanism associa-ted with the pawl and ratcheting devices is not of suiiiciently fine adjustment to permit of the brakeman 5i@ obtaining the best results. As is well known, all the parts of such types of hand brakes must be made of very substantial construction in order to withstand the unusually severe service. As` is customary,

@ the ratchet wheels are cast and necessarily the ratchet teeth must be spaced suihciently to insure the teeth being of strong and substantial construction so as to `avoid any tendency of stripping of the ratchet wheel in ml service. Due to the practical limitations,

therefore, which are imposed upon manu- `tacturers in designing the ratchet wheels tor the type of brakes in question` it is impossible to reduce the spacing between or the pitch of the ratchet wheel teeth and at the same time be able to manufacture them successfully on' a commercial basis. lin the actual operation of the brakes, during the taking up of the slack in the brake chain,

is experienced by the brakeman. During the early part of the actual tensioning of the brake chain, the brakeman has no ditiiculty in rotating the usual brake staff or its equivalent so as to have the t5 locking dog catch in a tooth. Actual tests have demonstrated that. after the slack has been taken out of the chain, the brakeman can run the tension on the brake chain to about' ve or six hundred pounds, with two 5@ or three ordinary oscillating movements ot the operating member, the tension increasing however in practically'a geometrical ratio: for each additional oscillation instead ot arithmetically. After the tension on the w brake lchain has reached six or seven hunn dred pounds, the additional tension exerted on the brake chain resulting from an advancement of the stati' or its equivalent an amount corresponding to one tooth of the ratchet wheel increases with extreme rapidity and after the tension has reached seven hundred pounds, it requires from four to five hundred pounds additional to advance the stati' an amount corresponding to one tooth of the ratchet wheel. lt is obvious that the brakeman may not be able to advance the stad an additional notch without exerting extreme edort while at the same time he is able to advance the stati an amount corresponding to a part of the pitch of the ratchet wheel teeth without unduly exerting himself. ln other words, under present actual conditions, the brakeman may ordinarily exert a tension on the brake chain of say seven hundred pounds but cannot advance the staZ or its e uivalent suiiiciently to engage the locking og with the next notch on the ratchet wheel since this would involve some five or six hundred pounds additional tension on the brake chain. if, therefore, the brakcman is enabled to advance the stad' so as to obtain a tension of nine or ten hundred pounds on the brake chain, without unduly exertin himself, the eiiiciency oit' the brake `would manifestly begreatly increased.

@ne object of my invention is to provide a simple arrangement by which a more finely graduated engagement of the locking means is obtained for hand brakes of the ratcheting wheel type than heretofore and in such a way as not to militate against the cost of manufacture or strength of the brake as an entirety. y

Other objects of the invention will more clearly appear from the description herein after following. v

in the 'drawing forming a part of this specification, Figure l is a horizontal sectional view ot a portion oft a hand brake shown as applied to 4the end wall et a car and 4embodying my improvements. Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view ot the structure illustrated in liigure 1 and corresponding substantially to the line 2 2 thereof. And Figure it is a trontelevational view et the improved locking dog employed with my construction.

ln said drawing, l0 indicates a portion .of the end wall of a freight car to which' tten its my improved brake is adapted to be se- 'cured. In carrying out my invention, as

shown in the drawing, a vertical brake stati' 11 is employed, the upper end thereof bein squared as indicated at 12 and upon whic wheel 13 havin ratchet teeth 14. The staff extends throug a suitable opening in the bottom wall 15 of a bracket 16 which is secured to `the car Wall 10. Said bracket 16 has a horizontally extending flange 17 and a verticall arranged flange 20 forming a part of the ousin the iiange 20 having a curved portion in icated at 21. A carrier 22 is oscillatably mounted on the ratchet wheel v13 and the housing,'said carrier being provided with a pair of laterally extended lspaced arms 23 between which is pivotall mounted the operating handle 24 on the olt 25. The handle 24 is rovided with a socket indicated at 26 and 1n which is slidable a double-toothed pawl 27. The pawl has an elongated slotl 28 through which the bolt 25 passes so as to adapt the pawl for back and forth sliding movement. It is normally held in its outermost position by a sprin 29. The housing is completed by a cap p ate 30, the parts being held in assembled relation by the bolt 31. The ca plate 30 may be provided with an upwar ly projecting handle 32 for the convenience of the brakeman while o erating the brake.

In order to provide or the fine adjustment in the locking of the ratchet wheel and staff, I em loy the following construction. Pivotal y mounted on the bolt 31 is a release lever 33, the same having upwardly and downwardly projecting 1pins 34 and 35 at its inner end as shown in 2 and 3. Also pivotally mounted on the bolt 31 is an upper toothed dog 36 and a lower toothed dog 37. In addition to being pivotally mounted on the bolt 31, the dogs 36 and 37 are rovided with arcuate slots 38 withi whic extend the pins 34: and 35. Each dog 36 and-37 has a single tooth indicated at 39 and 40 respectively. On their rear or outer sides, the dogs 36 and 37 are provided with studs 411-41 on which are mounted springs L12--42, the outer ends of the springs seating over correspondingly arranged studs 43-43.

As clearly appears from Fi slots 38 in the dogs 36 and A3 cient] elongated to permit the dog teeth to ri e over the teeth 14 of the ratchet wheel without eiecting movement of .the release handle although it will be evidentthat movementv of the release handle in the directionv indicated by the arrow a in Figure -1 will positively disengage both' dogs re 1, the

simultaneously from the,l ratchet wheel against the normal ,action of the springs 42. As also appears Vfrom Figures 1 and 3, the tooth 39 isi/located in advance of the is adapted'to be applied a ratchetv igures are sufii tooth 40 a distance corresponding preferably to one-half the pitch ordistance between the centers of the ratchet wheel teeth '14. With this arrangement, I am enabled to catch or lock the ratchet wheelat twice `strength of the ratchet wheel. Furthermore, by employin the more finely graduated adjustment ir locking the4 ratchet wheel, I eliminate an appreciable part of thelost motion normally incident to the operation of a brake even before the tension on the brake chain rises to such a point as to render it difficult for the brakeman vto advance the ratchet wheel a full notch and in this way increase the s eed with which the brake may be applic as well as increasing the eiliciency and effectiveness of the tension which may be applied to the usual brake chain. Y

I have herein shown and described what I now consider thev preferred manner of carrying out the invention but the same is merely illustrative of one embodiment thereof and all changes and modications are contemplated that come within the scope of the claims appended hereto.. j

I claim: j 1. In a hand brake mechanism for railway cars, the combination with a supporting bracket; of a rotatable chain-tightening element and means for effecting step by step rotation thereof; a ratchet wheel; a pair of independently operable locking dogs pivotally supported on said bracket and spring- 4influenced to operative position with respect to said ratchet wheel, the operative portions of said locking dogs` being circumferentially offset with respect to the ratchet wheel; and a release lever pivotally mounted on said bracket at the same point of pivotal lever having means engageable with both of 'said dogs to move the latter simultaneously n mounting of said locking dogs, said release oted release lever having oppositely extending pins engaging in openings in said dogs for movin the latter to inoperative position.

3. In a and brake mechanism, including a vertical brake staff, a ratchet wheel thereon, and a combined pawl and operating handle, the combination with a pair of independently acting, pivotally mounted, spring controlled locking dogs arranged to cooperate with said ratchet Wheel, each locking dog having a tooth, said teeth being relatively oiset from each other circumferentially of the ratchet wheel a distance different from a multiple of a full tooth pitch;

of a pivoted release lever having a lost motion connection between4 itself and each of said dogs for simuitaneously disengaging said dogs from the ratchet wheel against the influence of said spring control.

4. In a hand brake, including a ratchet wheel and pawl operating means cooperable therewith; the combination with a plurality of independently acting spring-controlled locking dogs cooperable with said ratchet wheel, the teeth of said relatively offset circumfcrentially of the ratchet Wheel a distance diferent from the full tooth pitch ofthe ratchet Wheel, or mul- `tiple thereof; of a release lever having slot and in connections with said dogs foimoving t e latter to inoperative position.

In witness that .l ciaun the foregoing l have hereunto subscribed my name this 21st day of June, 1920.

' JOHN F. OCONNOR. Witnesses:

CARRIE GAILING, UNAA C. Gmosr.

locking dogs being i 

